AbdulRazaq Unveils N120m Rewards, Dangote Shares for Outstanding Kwara Teachers

*Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Monday presented award prizes of about N120m to “the most outstanding teachers and head teachers/principals” of basic and post-basic public and private schools across the state.

The awards, which are in different categories are broken down as follows: 29 best principals/head teachers got N29m; 119 outstanding teachers got N59,500M; 11 serving and retired varsity dons won pioneer professorship recognition awards with N22M, while three schools went home with N9M for the Best Kept School Award.

The Governor also announced his government’s plan to buy 10,000 shares of the Dangote Refinery IPO for 10 female teachers in each of the outstanding public schools, saying the motive was to foster investment culture among them.

The Governor, who identified teachers as major drivers in the sector, said his government will continually prioritise their welfare in the state.

He added that the award was to recognise their sacrifice and motivate them to do more.“We will continue to do our part, including improving your welfare and working conditions on a sustainable basis.

We are confident that you and other stakeholders will always do your part,” the Governor said in Ilorin after making a symbolic presentation of the prizes at an event to commemorate the World Teachers’ Day.

“Our objective remains clear: to build an education system that gives every child in Kwara a fair opportunity to learn, develop useful skills and compete anywhere in the world.

The quality of education we provide today will determine the quality of Kwara we have tomorrow.“When we came into office, we knew that improving the education sector was a top priority.

We also knew that this required more than building classrooms or increasing the number of teachers. We needed to improve the quality of teaching and learning itself as well as sustainably restore the dignity of our teachers.

“That informed our decision to recruit qualified teachers through a merit-based process, strengthen continuous professional development, improve school infrastructure and introduce technology and data into the management of basic education through KwaraLEARN.”

AbdulRazaq also spoke about the regular promotion of teachers and the implementation of the 27.5 % Teachers’ Specific Allowance (TSA) by the administration, acknowledging that the “welfare and honour of our teachers must remain a priority at all times”.

According to him, government’s interventions in the sector are already yielding results considering the superlative performance of the school pupils that have earned the state many laurels at national and international competitions.

Talking about Dangote shares, the Governor disclosed that he has directed the state Head of Service, Dr. Olufunke Mercy Shittu, to design modalities to capture outstanding retired female teachers under the Dangote Refinery IPO as well.

“Before I conclude, we have been in discussion with Dangote Foundation and this discussion is about promoting investment culture among women, financial inclusion, investment, assets and shareholding,” he said.

“Dangote has created the Dangote Foundation, providing subscription grounds for women only. For every ten shares we purchase they will give a grant of another ten shares making twenty shares.“Our hardworking women teachers in TESCOM and SUBEB will get ten shares each.

We will also extend it to the retired female teachers so that peace and prosperity will go round them.”At the event were top government officials, National President, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Audu Titus Amba represented by Issa Habeeb, state leaders of NUT, heads of educational institutions, APC party leaders, and leaders of labour unions.

APC Deputy Governorship candidate in the state, Hon Seun Oguniyi Adato, ìn his remarks, said there are many instances to cite on how the Governor has added values to the teaching profession and the lives of teachers in the state. He congratulated the teachers worldwide and indeed in Kwara state on the celebration.

Dr Lawal Olohungbebe, the state Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, for his part, said hard work deserves to be recognised.He congratulated the awardees on their pick, while charging them to keep the flag high.

He encouraged teachers in the state to continue to develop themselves and remain focused on the most important outcomes that every child learns, assuring that the Ministry will keep engaging with relevant stakeholders on issues affecting the welfare of teachers, professional development and their working conditions.

Chairman State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Prof Sheu Raheem Adaramaja, said the state government has given them an approval for the conduct of the 2026 promotion for teachers, announcing that the promotion exam has been scheduled for next Saturday.

Adaramaja, who is also the Dean of State Chairmen for SUBEB, said Kwara will be the first state to conduct 2026 promotion exercise for eligible teachers in the whole Federation.Former Chairman of NLC in Kwara State and keynote speaker, Comrade Umar Farooq, urged the government and other critical stakeholders to continue to create conditions that will enable teachers to succeed.

He noted that supporting teachers is not merely supporting a profession but should be seen as an investment in the children, communities and society that depend on them.Earlier, the state NUT Chairman, Comrade Yusuf Wahab Agboola, commended the government for its investments in school infrastructure and the well-being of teachers through various initiatives.

He requested the government to key into the national harmonised retirement age for teachers, among other requests.Mashood Abdulrafiu Agboola,Deputy Chief Press Secretary,Government House Ilorin.October 5, 2026.